The Story So Far

We’ll have our review for the new Super-flick tomorrow. But before we see where we’re headed it’s always a good idea to look back to see where we’ve been. So join us as we take a look back at the first four films – the good, the bad, and that one with Richard Pryor (ugh!).

Richard Donner gives us the first big comic book movie, and man is it good. The film breaks down into two parts. The first chronicles the politics and demise of Krypton and Jor-El (Marlon Brando) sending his only son to Earth who is raised by the Kents, Jonathan (Glen Ford) and Martha (Phylis Thaxter). The second part of the film follows Clark (Christopher Reeve) in his new job at the Daily Planet with Lois Lane (Margot Kidder) and as Superman saving the day and stopping Lex Luthor’s (Gene Hackman) evil plans.

“Come to me, son of Jor-El; kneel before Zod.” The second film involves the Kryptonian criminal Zod (Terrance Stamp) and his two followers breaking out of the Phantom Zone prison and travelling to Earth to rule and take vengeance on the son of their jailer. While this is going on Lois discovers Clark’s secret and Clark decides to give up his powers to be with Lois , but has to give up his new life to become Superman again to stop Zod.

Richard Pryor is the man who almost killed Superman. The third entry into the franchise involves Pryor as a computer programmer, Robert Vaugn as a billionaire and Pamela Stephenson as his slut of a secretary, who together plan to use a computer to kill Superman. Interesting only for the fact of casting Annette O’Toole (Smallville) as Lana Lang. Horrendously awful entry that forever cursed every third film in comic book franchises.

As Superman plans to rid the world of all nuclear weapons, Lex Luthor returns with a kinda’ clone of Superman (though it doesn’t look like him and his powers and weaknesses are a little different) called Nuclear Man. Superman and Nuclear Man fight all over the planet and on the moon. Subplots involve the Daily Planet’s new publisher (Mariel Hemmingway) and her crush on Clark. Hard to imagine why we had to wait 19 years for another film.